Stellski: a MacBook comfort zone

 16 February 2024

 

STELLSKI CAFÉ

Neighbourgood, 129 Bree Street, Cape Town

 

My intended destination for Friday breakfast was Café Zoë in Hout Street, ostensibly open from 07h00.   I noted it for the first time two days ago, on our way to dinner at The Bailey, when our Uber fortuitously stopped right next to the entrance and decided that I would go there today.

 

At 18h00 on Wednesday the establishment appeared to be open for trading. At 09h45 today, it most definitely was not. Front door closed, security gate firmly locked, not sign saying “we’re open” or “door closed on account of the weather.” 

 

In the wife’s felicitous phrase “dead as disco.”

 

Ever resilient and resourceful,  I wandered down the road to Neighbourgood where Stellski, hailing from Woodstock, has an outlet.

 

One steps into the building through an archway and passes through a series of rooms to get to Stellski and each room has its own, no doubt highly curated, style of tables that appear to be public co-working spaces. The wi-fi connection here must be awesome.

 

Stellski is at the far end of the initial series of spaces. 

 

The small tables at the banquette seating on the left were occupied by MacBook users.  This was a blow, as I’d brought my own MacBook. The tables on the other side of the room, to my right, were also occupied. There were a couple of vacant, small, square tables with three chairs. Each had, peculiarly for this time of day, a “reserved” sign.   These tables were in the wide, open, drafty entrance, not a good site on an unseasonably cold day.

 

What the hey, I’ll settle for one of these tables. 

 

When I was about to sit down, the server asked me whether I was single.

 

What?  Time for a faster-than-lightning smart arse retort.

 

I’m happily married, I replied.

 

The server was neither amused nor mollified but restated her objection to me taking a table of my choice.  If I were on my own, that vacant table was not for the likes of me. I would be banished to the wasteland of  open cold  and drafty space just outside the restaurant proper.

 

I sought out a table for four (passive aggressive, c’est moi) with bench seating, sat down, viciously removed my MacBook from its carry bag and studied the menu.

 

I wasn’t alone for long. More patrons arrived, even in groups, and joined me outside in a space  that’s probably amazing on a warm, wind free day but today felt like the preserve of second-class citizens. Many of them also whipped out MacBooks or even laptops.

 

I kept a beady eye on those “reserved” tables inside. It was a long time before they were occupied and those lucky few had probably mot reserved them.

 

I had breakfast at the Stellski mothership last year (I think) and thought of it very much as neighbourhood coffee shop for gig workers who can slave away anywhere where they have a good wi-fi connection. Stellski has  brought this  USP to the CB,D hence the row of MacBookers inside and their equivalents outside.  

 

Stellski is a haven for those who want to work or take meetings, in a coffee shop environment rather than a guy like who just wants breakfast.  The majority of the casual visitors seemed to be tourists.

 

This version of Stellski is substantially more elegant than the ever so genteelly funky down-at-heel Woodstock branch.   The interior here is contemporary coffee shop chic with matching tables and chairs. On the other hand, the exterior section where I lurked is furnished with an eclectic mix of decidedly second-hand tables and chairs, presumably funky and edgy in intention.

 

The breakfast menu is simple and unadventurous, with your fry up, your health options, omelettes, avo on toast, French toast, pancakes, eggs “Benni” and Lex’s shakshuka. (I’m guessing it’s not a recipe from Superman’s nemesis.) There is also a slew of “additions” to beef up your brekkie. 

 

My choice was Lex’s shakshuka (R125), served in a cast iron skillet. Either I’ve been cosmically ordained to order meals in skillets recently or they're truly making a comeback.

The shakshuka was good, with a bountiful hit of chilli heat and the crisp toast was a treat  I noticed too late that I’d been given a couple of plastic thingies (punnets?) with butter for the bread that I used to scoop up the tomato and egg mixture.

 

My afters were two slices of banana bread (R50) with a cortado, and the previously unused butter came in handy. The banana loaf was slightly toasted with crisp, light crust and good crumb.

The bill came to R231,00 before tip.

 

The coffee was good, the service was friendly and efficient and the ambience of the place isn’t bad, though I suspect, come the winter proper, there’s no way one would want to sit outside unless there are serious measures to mitigate, even eliminate, the cold.